Gig

Bad Omens – Gig Review 25th January @ Riverstage, Brisbane QLD

Paul 'Browny' Brown

CEO/Founder and Editor-In-Chief

Jan 26, 2025

7 min read

Bad Omens
Riverstage, Brisbane QLD
January 25, 2025
Supports: Poppy and House Of Protection

I’ve written this opening paragraph more times than I’d like to admit, as I struggle to find the words to encapsulate the chaos that ensured when Bad Omens took to the stage at Brisbane’s infamous Riverstage. Over the past 36 years, this venue has hosted some of the biggest names in rock and metal – particularly during their formative years. Fun Fact: It also held the first two Soundwave Festivals in 2007 and 2008, so its legacy within the heavy music scene is well documented.

I say this because history was made when all three acts on this wild tour package hit the stage and poured their hearts into their craft, winning over new fans and creating memories to last a lifetime.

First up was the fresh AF new act House Of Protection. Despite only being a two-piece, the sound and energy that came from guitarist Stephen Harrison and drummer Aric Improta could well and truly replace our nation’s nuclear power reactors. From the moment they appeared, they wasted no time grabbing the attention of early punters as they launched into songs from their debut EP GALORE; easing into the madness with ‘Pulling Teeth‘. For its follow up ‘Learn to Forget‘, Stephen – who at this point was already bored of the stage – parted the crowd like Moses and positioned himself in the crowd, encouraging the formation of a circlepit around him. This up close and personal interaction won the hearts of many viewers close to the concrete jungle moshpit as they ran about and snapped a selfie with the musician while Aric bashed away singing/screaming on the kit.

After a brief return to the stage for the moody single ‘Being One‘ – which ended with a spectacular instrumental play-off with Aric unleashing animalistic tendencies upon us – Stephen set hits sights on his next conquest and proceeded to run off stage again venturing up the hill to the accessibility viewing platform, where he then climbed atop the roof to sing/scream his lungs out, much to the disapproval of the stressed out security and safety officers below him.

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Going back to that statement about history being made – in the 21 years I’ve been attending shows here, I’ve never seen any performer do anything like this! By doing so, Harrison made sure everyone in that venue would remember who House Of Protection were, as he stole their attention from the front to the back, and especially those underneath, who I am absolutely certain would have loved being close to the action for once. The high-octane set was rounded out with a backflip from Aric, new song ‘Fire‘, and debut single ‘It’s Supposed to Hurt‘ before the dynamic duo excited the stage to thunderous applause and screams galore.

There’s no denying House Of Protection scored a few thousand new fans following this performance and have well and truly set themselves up for world domination next. Get the know the lads via our interview here and stay tuned for what they catapult into next.

After a brief intermission, the sun had all by set and dusk was upon us when the enigma that is Poppy entered the stage, grabbed us all by the jugular and screamed her way back into our lives for the first time since her maiden voyage down under for Good Things Festival in 2019. Considering the last headline show Poppy delivered was a sideshow at Melbourne’s intimate Stay Gold, this new set was not just a glorious level up, but an indication of how fast this performer has grown in those five years, and how she exceeded all expectations.

Let me tell you this, the last time I saw Poppy I stated the experience was like “a mindfuck without the LSD trip,” and its safe to say not only does that statement still hold true, but it’s even more chaotic than ever.

As Poppy and her band of mask wearing merry men powered through tracks from releases such as I Disagree, Choke and new album Negative Spaces, we experienced a number of sanity-questioning moments including her ferociously crisp screams and Disturbed like cough/growls, ear-piercing guitar solos and gargantuan breakdowns, through to Partridge Family-esque instrumentals and disco ballad soundscapes (with high school prom lighting) followed by incomprehensible transitions back into sheer brutality. This juxtaposition of genre-warping was made even more special by the vast array of onlookers with mouths agape as they were trying to comprehend what the fuck they were witnessing, especially when Poppy – in her cute, innocently spoken voice asked the crowd nicely for both circlepits and walls of death – like a young child asking a grown up for a play toy. Not only did the crowd oblige on various occasions, it made for quite the spectacle as we watched on from the safe confines of the hill.

Notable mentions go to the live renditions of songs like ‘BLOODMONEY‘, ‘crystallized‘, ‘I Disagree‘ and ‘Scary Mask‘ (yay!), the moshing Dinosaurs during ‘they’re all around us‘, Poppy‘s “Fishy” new keyboardist / programmer [I’ve seen Jordan Fish rocking out on stage enough to pick him out in a crowd] and epic closer ‘new way out‘ – all of which kept moshers on their toes from start to finish.

For the industry dinosaurs who don’t think women can hold their own in a spot outside of the show opener – firstly, disrespectfully upper-cut yourself! – then see what Poppy has to say about your misogynistic and outdated views next time she’s on stage in a town near you.

Before we get into the main event, I want to share a quick anecdote about how I discovered Bad Omens. The first time the band landed in my sights was when news broke that they’d dropped off a US tour with The Amity Affliction and Senses Fail in 2018; apparently due to the size of their name on the tour poster. When word spread about their departure, the band took control of the narrative and hilariously released a limited edition range of merch with their name in tiny text on the front… What’s this got to do with the show though? Well, I’ll circle back to this soon, trust me, it will all make sense.

As the lights dimmed following an EPIC crowd sing-a-long of Tal Bachman‘s 1999 hit ‘She’s So High‘, the onslaught of mobile phones were out as mother fuckin’ Bad Omens emerged launching into ‘CONCRETE JUNGLE‘; much to the approval of onlookers far and wide. Decked out in all black with their signature balaclavas, the band set the tone for the evening with frontman Noah Sebastian prowling the stage like a hungry lion looking for prey. To say tonight’s show was the loudest I’d ever experienced would be an understatement, with many of the instrumentals (especially guitars) coming through the speakers at a deafening, and at times uncomfortable rate. But I wasn’t about to let more tinnitus issues plague my evening, because up next was the song which started my fascination with the band, ‘ARTIFICIAL SUICIDE‘. Upon release, you couldn’t listen to any Spotify playlist or album without this track making its way through the white noise (pun intended) and to witness it live for the first time was awe-inducing. Between the heavier metalcore elements, through to drummer Nick Folio‘s exceptional skills on the drums, I was lost in the performance. Noah’s screams sounding like a studio quality recording, proving the man’s pipes are best utilised when they’ve been rested, while Jolly Karlsson and Nicholas Ruffilo played as if their lives depended on it as the crowd surge kep the mosh fiends on their tippy toes.

The band’s production was nothing short of spectacular and the LED visuals added to not only their stage presence, but performance itself. They held your attention from start to finish, and didn’t allow you to to lose interest at any given moment. Especially when Poppy bounced her way back on stage again for the live rendition of their collaboration, ‘V.A.N’. The song, which might as well be a Poppy song feat. Bad Omens, was received exceptionally well, and kicked off the three-track assault (alongside ‘THE DRAIN‘ and ‘ANYTHING > HUMAN’) from their latest release, CONCRETE JUNGLE [OST] – an incredible collection of sights and sounds made even better by witnessing them first hand live. It was during this moment I realised just how far they’ve come since THE DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND‘s release (a mere 3 years ago) and we can only imagine what they’ve got in store for us next with the new music Noah teased at the first Melbourne show.

Speaking of TDOPOM, what followed next was a journey through their breakthrough album with personal highlights including ‘Like A Villain‘, ‘Nowhere To Go‘ and ‘The Grey‘, Noah’s cheeky “blegh” during ‘What Do You Want From Me?‘, the sexual erotica that overcame me during the title-track’s basslines (along with the bright red lights and water display across the LEDs), and not to mention Noah sporting that singlet as he sung his little heart out – Ladies, I get it now, what a man, I was swooooning hard. The band also ripped into the first song they ever released under the name Bad Omens, ‘Glass Houses‘, which caught me off-guard, making me realise I’ve been missing out on some of their much heavier music from the early years.

When the acoustic came out for ‘Just Pretend‘ – I, and those around me – genuinely felt like the show could have gone on for a few hours longer. We all weren’t ready to call it a night yet, but alas, they tore into their biggest hit to date and despite the issue they (and fans) faced in Melbourne on night one – when the confetti dislodged ceiling tiles and sadly injured unsuspected fans below – there were no hiccups this time around as the closing number went off without a hitch, and the band disappeared into the darkness amidst a sea of screams, cheers and applause.

Hellbent on wanting more, the savage mosh weren’t fulfilled yet and proceeded to incite a chant of “DETHRONE, DETHRONE DETHRONE,” calling for Bad Omens to return once more and tear into their brutal TikTok-famous hit. Without hesitation, the boys induced pandemonium as they immediately launched into even more chaos with bellowing gutturals and the song’s signature chuggy riffs, thumping basslines and blastbeat drum fills. Noah’s demonic growls and scoffs could be felt in the chests of everyone in attendance as the pit was sent into a frenzy one last time, bewildered by the fire and lighting production.

The final moments played out with a back and forth crowd participation section as Noah screamed the word “CON”, while we all followed it up with “CRETE” as the flames and spectacle that is a Bad Omens show came to climax.

As I mentioned earlier, I came into this show as a casual listener of Bad Omens. I never really understood the hype, or the overzealous fanfare that followed them, but after witnessing first-hand what they bring to the table and the theatrics and showmanship on display, it’s no wonder why this band are taking over the world. The effort they put into their live shows absolutely needs to be commended, as they go balls-to-the-wall from start to finish. I not only walked away from the goodbye, friend tour mesmerized, but it solidified my appreciation of the outfit – and dare I say it, I’m officially hooked now.

Going back to the anecdote I shared earlier; taking into consideration not only what was witnessed live, but the way in which this band have grinded their way to the top, you should never let anyone downplay your successes. Bad Omens have always been on this upward trajectory; they knew it, their teams knew it and most importantly their fans saw it long before anyone else caught on. So when someone downplays your authenticity/creativity or questions your purpose, eradicate yourself from the situation – just like Bad Omens did when they dropped off that aforementioned tour.

Since then, they’ve grown exponentially and made waves not by following trends, but creating them. They’ve disassociated from the metalcore scene – something guitarist Jolly Karlsson told us at Knotfest 2023 [watch the interview exclusively via our Patreon] – and paved their own path, reaching new milestones and showcasing their vision to a much larger audience than preconceived. Evidence of this came as the band performed their biggest headline show to date at Riverstage, with a SOLD OUT capacity of 9,500* strong.

*Corrected from Noah’s speech where he mentioned 8,500.

Bad Omens not only deserve all the praise they’re receiving, but they’re doing it regardless of if you’re on the bandwagon or not.

Review by Paul ‘Browny’ Brown @brownypaul

Photo Gallery supplied by Bryan Kirks @brybarian

The goodbye, friend tour rolls into Sydney for two shows from January 28th